Linked
by Sahar-Chan
Summary: Sasuke is back to the village and team seven is together again. But, two years later, after a failed mission, Sakura starts missing practice and no one seems to know why. Naturally, that doesn't sit well with Sasuke.
1. Chapter 1

**This is my second fan fiction. And, its plot has been stuck in my head for a while now. So, now it's out. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: This chapter was not beta-read so it may contain an embarrassing number of mistakes**

**Disclaimer: I do own Naruto… NOT.**

_**Linked: Chapter One**_

….

He arrived later than usual. The last Uchiha looked around the clearing, seeing Naruto, Kakashi and Sai already waiting for him.

She wasn't here again.

Ever since the previous month, Sakura started missing practice. He didn't pay it much attention at first. He had just assumed that she had been busy with the hospital work and that she'd be back. And, he'd get to train with her as he had done since his infamous return to the village two years ago. But, as days went buy and she stared missing as many as seven consecutive training sessions, he started to get worried. He told himself that it was a perfectly natural reaction to the unexplained absence of a teammate and a sparring partner. He simply cared about the performance of the team and Sakura's absenteeism was going to mess with the team's equilibrium. He didn't want a butchered mission on his record, especially not after last month's fiasco. He convinced himself that that was the only reason for the dark gnawing feeling that he'd been having.

The rest of the team had also noticed Sakura's absence. Naruto had even asked her about it. She had said that the hospital staff had caught the flu and that she had to work extra shifts to cover the loss. But, Sasuke, thanks to the rigorous training Orochimaru instilled in him, picked up of the subtle nuances of Sakura's body language –because, he told himself that was the only reason he continued to sneak glances at her form. And, he knew that her excuse was an outright lie.

Naruto, being dense, and Sai being a …whatever-he-was, didn't catch on to her lie. Kakashi, on the other hand, had shifted his weight from one foot to another, a sign that he suspected something, but, he had let the matter drop.

So, Sasuke figured that the responsibility of getting to the bottom of whatever was going on with Sakura rested on his shoulders. And, thus, he decided that after this training session, he'd have to go, find her and ask her. But, he knew enough about the hot-tempered girl to be sure that a head-on interrogation would lead to nothing but a whole lot of yelling on both parts. Therefore, if he wanted to find out anything, he needed to approach this in a non-threatening way. And, that meant coming up with an excuse to see her.

"Yo, Teme, I would like to train before I'm dead. So, let's go." Naruto hollered from the edge of the clearing already pulling out his kunai.

This was they're routine. No "good morning", no "how do you do". Just fight and then head for lunch –most often than not, it involved ramen. It was silent (well, as silent as you could be with Naruto) direct and efficient.

"That eager to get your ass handed to you dope?" the brooding man asked.

"Yeah, you keep telling yourself that, maybe you'll even believe it someday. But, Don't worry I'll take it easy on you?" the bland said chakra levels shooting up and a Rasengan forming in his hand.

Two hours later, Sasuke stood on wobbly dabbling at the blood on his cheek with the sleeve of his shirt and noted with, no small amount of satisfaction, that his sparring partner was trying to stand on equally wobbly legs.

"Do you need to the visit the hospital, dope?" hoping that the stubborn idiot would say yes so they can run into Sakura.

"No, I'm good. It's nothing a hot bowl of ramen can't fix. But, since you did the damage Uchiha, it's only fair that you buy me that bowl of ramen. You know, as a compensation," Naruto declared all hopeful big blue eyes. You would think that, on an ANBU salary, the guy would at least be able to afford to feed himself. Apparently, not

"As much as I would like to make up for my sinful deed", the Raven-haired man replied in a dry tone," I'll have to pass. I have a thing to do."

"A _thing_? That's your excuse for missing ramen? What can possibly be more important than ramen?" Naruto exclaimed as his chances of free ramen evaporated. Then, a devilish twinkle entered the man's face. "This thing doesn't happen to involve a girl, does it?"

"Yes," Sasuke answered, already walking away and leaving Naruto to his antics, "it does involve a girl. We're going to run away together and get married. And, you won't be invited to the wedding." A sudden image of Sakura in a slender elegant white wedding dress popped into his head. He shook it off instantly.

"And, she even gave you a sense of humor," Naruto gasped dramatically, "I have to meet this chick. What other miracles can she do? Maybe, she can give me an awesome superpower. Not that my current powers aren't awesome, but, it's just that… "

As Sasuke headed into town, Naruto's voice faded and the traffic noise filled his ears. The logical place to start his search would be the hospital. And, so, he headed there. He figured he could pretend to want to help with the festival that she was helping to plan, which wouldn't be a bad idea. He had been back in the village for over two years and had yet to win back the trust of the locals. So, this could be an opportunity to get in touch with his philanthropist side and help his community. And, if he got to be in the presence of the rosette on a daily basis for over two months… let's just say that he wasn't one to complain.

As he got inside the hospital, he pretended not to notice the members of the staff pausing in their way to look at him and then quickly look away and whispering among themselves. Whether it was out of fear or curiosity, he didn't know and frankly didn't care. At the nurses' station, he found a young blond woman. As soon as she saw him, her eyes widened. But, she quickly recovered and put on what Sasuke assumed to be her most flirtatious smile. Oh great, a fangirl. He resisted the urge to rub his temples.

"How can I help you?" she said in a husky voice, all but shoving her cleavage in his face.

"I'm looking Dr. Sakura Haruno."

"Oh, she's not here," the woman frowned a little. "She took a two week leave three days ago. She didn't tell you? That's not very considerate, letting her handsome teammate worried. _I _would never do that." She added leaning over the counter.

"Yes, I'm sure you won't," he agreed trying really hard not to lean back and cover his nose. She must have been wearing two gallons of perfume. "Do you happen to know where I can find her?"

"I heard she was doing some renovations in her house. I can come with you if you want."

"No," he said as he turned on his heels and left the hospital.

So, she had lied to them and to the hospital staff. Just _what _was she hiding?

Sasuke reached for the bell next to the brown door in front of him and rang it. He had only been to Sakura's place a few times. Mostly, when he needed a slight patching up and he didn't want to go to the hospital or on those rare occasions when Naruto nagged him into going to a party there. But, from what he recalled it wasn't very big, but, it was nice, cozy. He had been expecting to find Sakura at home sick or to not find her at home at all. What he did not expect however was for a shirtless man to open the door and two other strange man just hanging around Sakura's house.

Sakura, slumped on the couch, watched as Akira answered the door. She watched as he was thrown across the living room and into the wall where her family photos hung. And, she watched as a certain raging Uchiha stormed into the house.

Her two other bodyguards, twin brothers called Daichi and Daiki, tensed and pulled out their weapons. But, she just waved them off. She waited for the rest of her old team to barge in, and, when they didn't, she sighed in both relief and disappointment.

As if hearing her soft sigh, he turned in her direction and froze. She could see his –very broad, well-muscled- chest expand as he drew in a quick breath in what she knew must be horror or revulsion. She patted her messy hair self-consciously. She knew she looked like death warmed over. But, he could have at least not been so obvious about it.

He turned eyes that had gone Sharingan red on the twins.

"Who are you?" he asked his voice going soft, a sure sign that he was angry, extremely angry. When the twins didn't answer him, a tic developed just above his right eye.

"I said" he repeated in an even softer voice, "who are you?"

Alright, she sensed a fight coming and she really didn't want to clean blood from her carpet…again. So, she sat up straight on the couch and answered for them, "They're here to protect me."

His eyes narrowed on her. "Explain," he ordered. She wasn't appreciating his authoritarian tone.

"I can't," she replied, finding satisfaction in telling the truth and seeing his eyes narrow further. Could he even see with his eyes like that?

"Why?"

"Mission related," was all the explanation she offered.

She expected him to try to pry the truth out of her and make her admit what had happened. She needed him to force her to confide in him even though she knew that she couldn't. She needed to tell someone familiar, anyone that she knew, even an emotionally constipated one, about what was going on. But, he just turned around and left slamming the door on his way out.

She knew better than to hope that he'd stay. But, she thought that, at least, curiosity would get the better of him, that his stubborn nature would kick in and he'd not leave until he got her to spill all the sordid details. Sadly, though, he didn't seem to care enough even to do that.

She let her back hit the couch. Then, she turned her head to Akira to see him picking up the frames that fell on the floor and hanging them back on the wall.

"I'm sorry about that," she said with a grimace. Sasuke had hit him so hard that there was now a small fissure on the wall, "do you need me to heal you? It's the least I can do."

"No, it's alright. Us ANBUs are made of tougher stuff. Besides, you need to conserve your strength for the trip to come. You can't really afford to lose your chakra at this point." _Or you'll die_, what the part that he left out.

Thirty minutes later, just when she was about to get her first wink of sleep in three days, her front door was thrown open again and in walked Sasuke. If this kept happening, she was going to need a new door by the end of the week. Maybe she'd get a titanium-reinforced one. Her thoughts of replacing her door quickly vanished as she saw the file he carried under his armpit, the file that said she only had a few weeks to live

_**0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0**_

**Dum dum dum duuuuuum**

**Hope you enjoyed that. It was a bit rushed, sorry.**

**So… review? Oh, and, if you caught any mistakes tell me so I can edit, please.**

**Peace-out**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here is the second installment. It only took 24 hours and that's a record for me! Yay, me!**

**Thank you to my lovely friend Ines for going through this chapter and making it better.**

**Disclaimer: I do own Naruto… NOT.**

_**Linked: Chapter One**_

….

He slammed the file down on the table near the couch.

If her other teammates got their hands on that file, she knew that they would just overreact and their endearing but annoying overprotective nature would kick in. She could already picture Naruto demanding she be put under armed protection while the rest of the team went and slew whatever demon that'd been haunting her for her. Even Tsunade suggested going hunt the bastard herself but, Sakura quickly shot down that decision. She couldn't let them do this for her because she knew that if they failed, they'd end up blaming themselves but if she did it on her own, they wouldn't feel so responsible.

She knew it was crappy logic but it was the best she could come up with at that moment. And, that's why she made the Hokage promise her that she wouldn't share the information in that file with anyone aside from the other three members of the team protecting her.

"How did you get her to give you that file?" she asked.

"Sake," he answered as if it was idiotic of her not to see the obvious. "Now, tell me what happened."

"I assume you've already read the file. You know what happened." But, she knew that he wasn't going to let it go. The stubborn man never did. Sakura could feel the beginning of a headache. She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples.

What kind of self-respecting Hokage accepted a bribe from an ex-traitor? Sell her favorite apprentice for a few bottles of Sake? Shame!

Sakura knew she should be appalled. But, she had worked for Tsunade for too many years and all she felt was annoyance. That's not to say that she wouldn't get her revenge on her mentor, she would and she would make it good –if she lived that long. She reopened her eyes to find Sasuke looking at her expectantly.

She was too tired and sleepy to put up much of a fight. So, she surrendered. "We didn't fail last month's mission," she started, "at least not the way we thought we had."

The previous month, Konoha received reports that one of Orochimaru's experiments was hiding in a village on the borders between the country of fire and the country of rain. Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura were sent there to investigate the sightings. But, when they got there, the village was burnt to the ground and many of the villagers and some of the ninjas that normally patrolled the borders were killed by a masked man. They had just assumed that Orochimaru's test subject had heard of their arrival, was spooked, fled and destroyed whatever trace he had left behind in the village. So, they helped the villagers as best they could and Sakura had healed some of the severe injuries that people had sustained.

"As you have probably read in the file, the old ninja that I healed, with the pox marks on his face was the experiment we were looking for. Apparently, the ninjas that came to the villagers' aid did some damage to him and he couldn't leave so he impersonated a ninja of the leaf and melted into the crowd." Sakura answered, "He joined the wounded that I healed! He was right there and instead of killing him, I _healed_ him." _And, now I get to pay the price of my idiocy, _she thought.

"The genetic modification that Orochimaru did on this ninja gave him the ability to drain someone's chakra and absorb it with just a touch," she continued," I'm assuming that when I healed him, the chakra that I pumped into him had somehow awakened a dormant part of his ability and allowed him to link his ability to my chakra. So, now, he's able to take my chakra and to use it as his own even without touch involved. But, he didn't just link my chakra to him, he also liked my mind. So, every time he uses it, I can see through his mind and through his eyes, but, for some reason, he can't see through mine. That had helped us confirm his identity and locate him so we can help sever the link. We're still waiting for a file on him so we can learn more."

She left out the part about what she saw when she linked up to him; the death and destruction that he caused when he used her reserve of chakra. She also left out the part about how these episodes left her drained physically and mentally. There was no need for him to know all the gory details.

Sasuke's handsome face didn't show any changes all through her narration. No worry, no sadness or horror or worry, just an impassive expression on a (perfect) face and an unperturbed look in the deepest obsidian eyes she had ever seen._ Such a jerk should not be allowed to look that good._

"How long do you have?"

"If I kept my chakra reserve to a minimum, I have six weeks. We're going to where we believe this guy is and we're going to capture him, hopefully, before those six weeks are done," she answered trying not to let desperation and panic leak into her voice.

He nodded. He _freaking nodded. _And, her panic quickly subsided to be replaced by outrage. She didn't want his pity or a huge show of concern. But, would it kill the guy to show a little sympathy? She knew she didn't mean much to him, but, for the love of all that is holy, was a pat on the back or a kind look so far beyond his abilities? Emotionally inept Uchiha!

"You can't tell any of the guys about this, I've sent a message to Kakashi sensei to tell him that I'm going on a mission. And, that's all they need to know. Besides, if you do, you'll be breaking a mission's confidentiality protocol. So, no matter how much Naruto annoys you, don't say anything to him."

"I won't have to," he said a little smirk working its way into his face. She did _not _like the sight of that smile. Actually, she did like to see him smirking –it was as close to smiling as he ever got. What she did not like, was the devilish glint that was coupled with that smirk. Yeah, she had a feeling that wasn't going to like this.

"What do mean you won't have to?" she asked cautiously.

"I mean that I won't have to since I'm going on the mission with you."

She was right, she did not like it. Not one bit!

"No, you're not!" she didn't want him present when her health deteriorated further. He'd just think her weak and she couldn't handle that.

Instead of answering –like a normal human being, he handed her a piece of paper. She unfolded it and skimmed through it.

"_Sasuke Uchiha… takes a part in mission number 1598… together with ANBU members Sakura Haruno and Akira Ame… Signed the … in Konoha: the Hokage Tsunade Senju._"

"How did you-" she stopped herself when he raised one eyebrow at her. She sighed, "Of course, sake."

_Did he just go around bribing people to get what he wanted? The legendary Uchiha ate breakfast, brushed his teeth, __**bribed people**__ and then headed off to train with Naruto._

"Well," she said barely hiding her annoyance but resigning herself to reality, "since you're going to be part of the mission, you might as well meet the other members of the squad. They're in case he actually managed to get into my mind and find out who I was, and I was too drained to fight him."

Akira, who just got back from the kitchen with a bottle of water in his right hand, extended his free hand towards Sasuke.

"Hi, I'm Akira, the previously shirtless one that you threw against the wall," he said by way of introduction.

"He had just got out of the shower when you knocked," she responded defensively then immediately chided herself. What was wrong with her? She didn't have to explain her actions or what went on in her house to the raven-haired man.

Sasuke gave her a look that she couldn't decipher but didn't take Akira's hand. She gave him a glare that could rival his death glare. _Take his hand or I'll break yours. I don't tolerate rudeness in my house_, she tried to convey while giving him the stink eye.

To Sasuke's a handshake was just not something he did. To personal, too close. So, he ignored then and let people's hard looks bounce right off him. But, as he saw Sakura getting ready to get up and probably give him a lecture that he would ignore, he changed his mind. Not because he was afraid of her lectures –actually, he quiet enjoyed them, her cheeks would redden, her pink hair would fly everywhere in soft looking locks and her eyes would shine, not that he'd been staring at her or anything. But, seeing how pale she was and knowing that a lecture would just drain whatever strength she had left; Sasuke reluctantly clasped the other man's hand and shook it. Honestly! The things he did for his team!

Sakura couldn't help but appreciate the muscles in his arms as they tensed and rippled. She was on death's door but she was still checking out his biceps?! What was wrong with her? A lot, it seemed.

Sasuke introduced himself to his 'teammates'; Akira the ANBU, Daichi and Daiki the ninjas from rain country that are were sent to collaborate with Konoha on this mission. Apparently, Sakura managed to confirm that the sick monster linked to her has crossed the borders between fire and rain and was currently heading south. And, apparently, rain didn't want a repeat performance of the massacre of the border village on their lands. As they shook hands, Sasuke studied them and, even though he can appreciate them as capable shinobis, instantly disliked them. And, the dislike had nothing to with the fact that they were staying in Sakura's house.

Later, they shared mission details which basically meant that Sakura talked while Sasuke listened and occasionally grunted, nodded or gave his infamous "Hn".

"So, you'll come back tomorrow and we can head for rain?" Sakura asked as she finished filling him in with the mission.

"I was thinking of spending the night," he answered.

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**Let the fangirling begin!**

**The explanation chapters always suck and I didn't know how to make it less boring but it'll get better. I promise!**

**By the way, I'm not sure humor is the right genre for this story. But, I don't know with what else to replace it. so, suggestions are encouraged.**

**Now, see that space below the chapter? Yes, that one! Go ahead click there and ****REVIEW****!**

**Peace-out**


	3. Chapter 3

**THANK YOU to everyone who has reviewed. I'm really enjoying writing this fan fiction. I hope you like it too.**

**Again, I want to give a shout out to my friend Yosra for her awesome beta-reading even though she thought Naruto was the name of a kind of Asian noodles.**

**Disclaimer: I do own Naruto… NOT.**

_**Linked: Chapter Three**_

….

"Excuse me?" Sakura managed to articulate when she finally picked her jaw off the ground.

But, Sasuke was already headed for her front door. So, he just made that outrageous statement then was planning on leaving? The hell!

Maybe, finally got a sense of humor and was messing with her. She sighed in relief. Yeah, that must have been it.

"I'll pack my gear and return here in a couple of hours," were his parting words. And, with that, all her hopes of him not staying the night were shot to hell.

Sakura fumed. She didn't want him in her house. She didn't want him on this mission. She didn't want him to see just how much the episodes have drained her! In fact, just the thought of him witnessing how much help she needed just to perform the most basic healing technique made her want to bury herself under a rock. If he thought her weak before, there would be no changing his mind after this spectacular show. She did, however, comfort herself with the fact that she might not live long enough for him to call her weak again. _Yeah, in your face Uchiha!_

Sasuke came back two hours later to Sakura's house to find her sleeping on the couch, covered in a blanket with the TV on. It was only 7 pm. He stood there and looked at her and told himself that he absolutely was not staring.

"The episodes she suffers leave her tired and cranky for days. So, she watches TV till she falls asleep. It's her form of therapeutic meditation, I guess," Daichi said as he entered from the hallway leading to the kitchen. He could already tell the twins apart. _One of the pros of being a ninja: the incredible and highly coveted talent of telling twins apart_, he thought dryly.

Sasuke wasn't sure why he was annoyed that this guy, a virtual stranger, knew more about the sleeping girl than he did. All he knew was that there was no way in hell, heaven or limbo that he was letting these three strange men sleep under the same roof as Sakura while he slept elsewhere.

"Before she went to sleep, she said to give you the spare bedroom, third door on the right in that hallway," Daichi indicated the hallway on the opposite direction of that which led to the kitchen, "It's kind of the only one left with the three of us here." With that, the rain ninja turn back to the kitchen.

Sasuke made his way to his room. It was just what most expected a guest bedroom to be, a double bed, a nightstand and a small closet. But, when he looked closely, he noticed Sakura's presence in the room: the three scrolls –probably medicine related- that lay on the nightstand, the pink towel in the closet but most especially the faint smell of lavender that permeated the air. And, if he was inhaling that smell with the desperation of someone suffocating and in dire need of oxygen, well, there was probably a good reason for that and he just hadn't figured it out yet.

As night fell and hours passed by, Sasuke read every scrap of information about the mission and then he read them again trying to come up with away to speed their journey though rain and to find this guy faster. But, what they had at that moment was sorely lacking in information about this guy's identity before he became Orochimaru's experiment. And, Sasuke, even though he had spent years working with that serpent-like creep, had never seen the guy before they had met him at the village at the borders.

It also didn't mention any of the side effects that this link had aside from how much time Sakura had left.

He finally decided to stop and looked at the clock on the nightstand. 11:15 PM was flashing in bright green light on the screen.

He rubbed his temples. Six weeks! They had a measly six weeks to find the bastard, apprehend him and figure out a way to severe the link that connected him to the kunoichi. Otherwise, she'd be dead. The mere thought of her perishing sent tremors of what felt suspiciously like panic running through Sasuke's body.

He thought maybe a shower and a break can give him rest. And, later, he could read the files with a new perspective. He listened in to the sounds in the house. There were none. Everyone was probably already asleep. Perfect! He grabbed a change of clothes from his backpack and, since he needed something to dry himself with, he reluctantly took the offending pink towel from the closet and headed for the bathroom.

Sakura woke up in the middle of the night with a rebelling stomach and let out a small groan of suffering. She was in much the same state she had found herself in since her chakra first started draining, with what little food Daichi had made her eat at lunch trying to work its way back to the outside world. It was kind of like being pregnant, she thought, an invisible someone was feeding on her, giving her mood swings and the worst case of morning sickness that never limited itself to the morning hours.

She put a hand on her month and stumbled blindly to the bathroom where she sunk into her knees in front of the toilet bowl and let her body's needs take over.

The sounds of her retching masked the sound of the running water in the bathroom perfectly. So, she was a little surprised when she felt a hand –a big hand, a man's hand- gently pull her hair out of her face and hold it to in the back of her neck. Another hand settled on her back with the thumb making slow comforting circles on her spine. She was grateful to the hands for anchoring her while her intestines tried to leave her body.

When the heaves rattling her body finally ceased, she lifted her head out of the porcelain bowl and flushed. The hands let go of her hair and she instantly missed their presence. But, a second later, they came back with a glass of water. She took it and murmured a soft "thank you" and gulped the contents.

Then, her eyes traced the hands up to a forearm and froze. She knew that forearm. She had been admiring that forearm not five hours ago. Her eyes continued their upward journey while she prayed that she'd be proven wrong.

Her prayers went unanswered.

Standing in front of her was Sasuke with his eyes ever-so-opaque and a grimace marring the perfection of his face._ Probably disgust,_ she thought. And, why wouldn't he feel disgusted? He had just saw her sprawled on the floor of her bath room, hugging her toilet and giving him a splendid view of the contents of her bowls. She felt her face heat with mortification. Where was a good lightning bolt when you needed one to strike you?

Her thoughts of the merits of being barbecued by lightening quickly vanished when she noticed Sasuke's state of dress… or undress.

Oh dear Kami!

His hair was drenched and hung on his face in spiked locks. The rest of his body was also drenched. And, save a pink towel around his hips, it was also completely and utterly naked. She knew she was staring. But, honestly who could blame her. That boy should come with a warning sign: may cause permanent brain damage caused by an acute and swift rise of hormone levels if seen almost naked.

Sasuke cleared his throat and Sakura's eyes snapped to his. Shit! Add ogling to her list of cringe-an-mortification-causing moments. Most of the things on that list seemed to be related in one way or another. he looked at her for a moment –she hoped the paleness caused by her sickness hid her blush- then, got up and when to the shower carrying with him a change of clothes that had been laid next to her tub. And, she still she stared after him because the view from the back was just as good as the front. A second later, the water in the shower went off. And the sound of rustling clothes filled the bathroom. She headed to the sink and started brushing her teeth hoping to get rid of both the foul taste in her mouth and the mouth-watering sight of Sasuke. Stupid Uchiha!

Sasuke came back out of the shower fully dressed and watched as Sakura finished brushing her teeth. He was trying not to think about the fact that she had just seen him wearing a pink towel. PINK!

She, on the other hand, was wearing yoga pants and what looked to be a man's shirt –why did that fact cause his teeth to grind. And, who the hell gave her that shirt?!

She turned to him "Thanks for … you know," she softly whispered with a weak smile on her face.

He nodded.

"Why isn't there any information about the side effects of this link in the mission files?"

"I'm documenting those as I go. They're not finished yet."

"Does that happen often? Getting sick?" he asked trying to learn as much as he could about what this god-forsaken bond is doing to her.

It was her turn to nod. "The worst ones come directly after a 'vision' –when he uses my chakra and I'm linked to his consciousness. But, after twenty four, the upset stomach becomes manageable."

But, he knew from the file that her last 'vision' was sixty hours ago. So, this was what she called 'manageable'?

He cursed softly.

"It's okay, really. It wasn't as bad as it looked," she hurriedly said.

Typical Sakura! She was the one hurling her guts out not five minutes ago and now _she_ was comforting _him._ But, he didn't want comfort. He wanted facts.

"What else do the visions cause?"

"After they're over, just a little fatigue, nausea," she said avoiding his eyes. There was something she wasn't telling him. He would have asked but one look at her half closed eyes told him that she needed to get back to sleep. The interrogation would have to be postponed till tomorrow.

"Let's go," he said already walking out of the bathroom.

They went to the living room. She crawled under the blanket on the couch like a kitten. _A cute vulnerable kitten_, he thought but quickly shook his head. The lack of sleep must have been getting to him.

He settled down on the love seat next to the couch and turned on the TV.

"Aren't you sleeping?" she asked her voice already going soft, raspy and faint.

"No," was his answer.

For some in sane reason, he wanted to be there for her in case she had to throw up again… or just to watch her sleep.

Five minutes later, he heard her breath even out and saw her body relax.

He had never felt more content which freaked him out to no end –not that he'd ever admit to it.

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**The fourth chapter is currently in progress. God willing, it would be out in the weekend.**

**Now, go ahead and ****REVIEW****, please *Gives you wide puppy dog eyes***

**By the way, was there OCC-ness?**

**Peace-out**


	4. Chapter 4

**THANK YOU again to everyone who has reviewed. This is really exciting –and exhausting. I wrote this chapter in like 3 hours because **_**it won't get out of my head! **_**So, that's why it turned out shorter than the others. I hope you like it! So, without further ado, here's the next chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do own Naruto… NOT.**

_**Linked: Chapter Four**_

….

Sakura woke up feeling more refreshed than she ever had before. She opened her eyes only to see Sasuke still on the love seat, sleeping. When he slept he didn't look like an emotionally inept person. Actually, he almost looked… innocent. The thought had her stiffening a giggle. Yeah, right, Sasuke would be innocent the day Naruto gave up ramen.

She hadn't had many nightmares yesterday. And, none of the ones she did have was as bad as the ones she used to have. She refused to credit to the Uchiha's presence. That would that she was reassured by him, that she felt safe with him and –God forbid- that she was letting down her guards and letting him in again. And, that simply was never going to happen. She wasn't _that_ self-destructive… At least she hoped she wasn't… _Please don't let me be that stupid_, she prayed.

She remembered how he acted last night. Like he actually cared which was just as preposterous as thinking he was innocent. But, that didn't stop her from noticing that he _took care of her_ and _slept next to her_. Maybe he had finally realized she was dying and tried to be civil to her. Who the heck knew what went on in that boy's mind?

Her stomach growled. But, she ignored it. It was going choose to either digest the food or leave it to somebody who would appreciate it. She got up. As soon as she put her feet on the ground, Sasuke spoke.

"Still sick?" his voice was raspy from sleep, his clothes were rumbled from sleeping on that seat. And, damn, even he didn't look as good looking as ever.

Of course, the Uchiha didn't get the memo about humans looking their worst when they first wake up.

"No," she answered, also with a raspy voice.

She quickly brought her hands up to what she knew to be the mother of all bed hairs. She tried to bring some measure of order into it. Then, she hesitated. Why did she try to hide from him? It wasn't like what he thought of her mattered, right? She slowly lowered her hands resisting the urge to comb her fingers through her hair.

She went to her room and changed.

Five minutes later, she walked to the kitchen. The smell of pancakes assaulted her right away. He stomach let out a mighty roar. _Oh, no, you don't. No food for you! _Her stomach rumbled louder in protest. Sakura looked at it and frowned, like a mother scolding her child.

"Are you just going to come eat or just stand there glaring at yourself," Daichi asked.

He was preparing some more pancakes while his brother and Akira sat on the table devouring the contents of their plates.

"I don't want to eat today. I'll just get sick on the way to Rain. We're on a tight schedule already and can't afford stops," she answered. But, really, she was just tired of throwing up all the time. It drained her and made her feel weak. She _hated _feeling weak.

"So, you're just going to starve yourself? Yeah, that would help us. Big time," Daichi deadpanned. "Come on. Sit, eat. You know you can't resist my cooking. I knew you'll be extra contrary with the mission ahead. So, I added strawberry on yours." He waved a plate with a pancake and big chucks of sliced strawberry in her direction.

This conversation was there normal routine for the past week. She'd refuse to eat and he'd bully her into having a few bites that she'd end up chucking out later. And, by bully her, she meant reasonably point out the silliness of her action. But, really, she much preferred the term "bully".

She crossed her arms on her chest and just glared. He raised an eyebrow. He had her. She couldn't resist his pancakes and strawberries at the same time. Evil bastard!

"Did I mention how much I hate you?" she asked. But, obediently, she took the plate from him, settled it on the table before sitting down on Daiki's right.

"I love you too cuteness," he said cheekily.

And that was what Sasuke walked on.

Sasuke twitched. He looked at the man who spoke. The rain ninja was back to his task flipping pancakes. Sakura on the other he noted was smiling and picking at her food with a fork.

"And, stop stabbing your food," Daichi said without looking back at her.

"I'm not-" she started.

"She's stabbing," Daiki interrupted.

She glared at the man. "Tattletale," she said as she took a small bite of her pancake.

Sakura had grown more comfortable around these guys in the space of a couple of weeks than she ever did with him throughout years. Then, again, his presence didn't exactly exude a comforting aura. And, because it kept most annoying people away, he liked it that way. He did, he really did. So, he didn't care if she was comfortable around them or not. He absolutely and utterly did not.

"Pancakes?" Daichi asked already setting a hot one on a plate and offering it to him.

To prove that he had no problem with the kind of easy interaction between these men and Sakura and that he had no desire to punch their faces in, he accepted. He took the plate and sat on Sakura's other side. He bit into his food and was (unpleasantly) surprised to find that it tasted good. So, the guy knew how to _not _burn a pancake. Big deal!

Daichi seemed to finally finish cooking. He put a plate of extra pancakes in the center of the table and his own in front of him after he sat next to Akira across from Sasuke.

"See?" he said to Sakura smiling, "Your stomach stopped letting battle cries. Was that so hard?"

"It's not the going in that's hard. It's the coming out. And, when it does, I'm doing it on that blue jacket of yours," she said with her mouth full. Sasuke should he aghast by such a lack of matter. But, he just wasn't.

"My good luck jacket?" the rain shinobi gasped, "You wouldn't."

She just gave him a big toothy smile and got back to eating.

"And to think that I gave you my favorite gray shirt!" he exclaimed.

Sasuke's fork stopped half way to his mouth. The gray shirt that Sakura had been wearing to sleep last night?

"You didn't _give_ it to me. I won it because you suck at poker!" she pointed out.

Sasuke didn't exactly understand why, he just knew that shirt had to go.

After breakfast, the party of five exited Sakura's house. Daiki crouched and Sakura walked to him.

"What are you doing?" Sasuke asked.

"Since Sakura has to use as little chakra as possible, it would be preferable I she doesn't use it to run all the way to Rain. But, we need to move fast. So, I'm carrying her," Daiki replied.

Sakura moved in, probably to wound her arms around the man's neck. Before he could tell it not to, Sasuke's body reacted. He moved in front of Sakura faster than even a ninja's eye could see and dropped her on his back. She had to wound her arms and legs around him tightly to keep from losing her equilibrium.

"Uchiha what the hell do you think you're doing?" she bellowed, her mouth right next to his ear.

He winced. "Keep it down, woman. I still need my ear drums," He grunted, annoyed.

"Not until you explained," she screamed. Kami, that girl had a healthy set of pipes.

"I'm carrying you."

"Well, thank you for that enlightening truth, Captain Obvious."

"Hn."

"Uchiha!"

"I'm stronger. I can go faster with a heavy weight," he finally replied trying to rescue his abused hearing from further damage.

He felt her stiffen against him. "Heavy weight? Are you insinuating that I'm fat? You know, I may be low on chakra, but I have no reservations about using the last of my reserve to kick you back to last Christmas!"

But, they both knew that was a bullshit threat. He could sense her chakra levels and they were in the crapper. It would be a miracle if she managed to make him twitch let alone do some actual damage. So, he just ignored her, spun some chakra waves to support her more firmly on his back and take the pressure off of her limps. He then started hopping from one rooftop to another, then from a tree branch to another. He knew she was simmering in anger on his back. Tough! He could do nothing about that. Besides, she wasn't trying to get off of his back. That was acceptance in his book.

The other guys were hooping behind them, she noted.

Sakura's anger quickly faded when she realized its futility. But, with her rage gone, she started noticing things. Horrifyingly tempting things! The heat from his body radiated to hers. It would be so simple to just melt into that heat and forget about the fact that she was dying. His hair, blown by the wind, caressed her cheeks. You'd think from the spiky look at it that it would be rough. But it was silky and soft, damn it! And that smell! Dear Kami! She already knew his smell. But, up-close and personal as they were now, his scent was more pronounced. He smelt of forest and rain and something uniquely Sasuke. She hoped that as they continued on, he would start sweating and she could feel disgusted by him. But, something told her that wasn't going to happen anytime soon.

The man was like anti-unattractive. It was ridiculous.

And, so was she because a part of her wanted to bury her nose in the soft goodness of the hair at his nape and take a strong inhale of his scent. That's just what she needed right now, to be caught sniffing at him like a dog. It looked like she was going to have to fight this idiot part of her all the way to Rain. Perfect! Sakura sighed. She could tell that this was going to be a long, _long_ journey!

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**Alright! Four chapters in one week! How's that for hard work?**

**I hope you liked this fourth chapter –even if it was a little short. My friend just reminded me that I need to come up with fighting techniques for my OCs *nervous laugh* I have no idea what to do. HELP!**

**So, make sure you give me your suggestions and ****Review****.**

**Peace-out**


	5. Chapter 5

**A big thank you to everyone who has reviewed and/or given suggestion. You guys are beyond awesome. This chapter was a bit tricky and took time. But, I'm hoping that the length would make up for the delay :P Also, a big hug to my friend Ines for reading this chapter and improving it! You rock, girl!**

**So, dudes and dudettes without further ado, here's chapter five.**

**Disclaimer: I do own Naruto… NOT.**

_**Linked: Chapter Five**_

….

Sasuke was highly annoyed. That was what he labeled what he was feeling: annoyance. The cause of his current mood resides on the person on his back.

Sakura had her arms and legs wrapped around him and was cocooning in a blanket warmth and lavender. She also kept wiggling and moving on his back causing their bodies to brush against each other. If that wasn't bad enough, when she breathed, little puffs of air kept hitting his neck… which was just uncomfortable and distracting. She was literally breathing down his neck! He told himself that he didn't like it. Nope, not at all! But why was he even affected by this? He prided himself on his discipline and the fact that few things ever got under his skin. And, yet, one puff of air and his focus is shot to shit? It was preposterous.

So, in order to prove to himself that he was still as emotionless as ever, he accelerated his pace to try and focus on scanning the road ahead for possible attackers.

He failed miserably.

Sasuke had made them keep a grueling pace for the next week and a half, stopping only for an hour for lunch or resting for the night. Sakura assumes that if she wasn't in need of rest, he wouldn't have stopped at all.

By the sixth day, they entered Rain and headed for where the rogue was presumably at. This was their eleventh day on the mission. She hoped he hadn't decided to leave town. If he did, and, he didn't use his chakra, they might never find him in time. She shook her head. This was no time for her bleak thoughts when this man needed to be stopped not only for her sake but for the sake of the people he massacred. _Get it together Haruno_, she ordered herself.

But, it wasn't all bad. There were a few good things that happened during the last few days. She and Sasuke now had a routine.

Whenever Sakura woke up drenched in sweat from her nightmares, she would go out of her tent and would find him awake hanging on some tree branch near her tent –she wondered if he slept at all or if he even needed to. He would come down from the tree, silently escort her back to her sleeping bag and stay at the opening of the tent until she fell asleep. When she woke up, he was always gone but she knew that he was never too far away.

And, whenever Sakura got sick, he would be there much as he had been that night at her apartment. The professional-hair-holder Sakura baptized him. Not that she would ever use the nickname to his face! Still it was nice of him to do it. He also joined efforts with Daichi into making her eat. She didn't know whether she liked him or hated him for that though.

However, what did she did know is that she was having feelings about him. Not "well he's my teammate, I care about him" feelings, not even "I'm attracted to him and I want him" feeling. Hers were the messy feelings, the ones where she wanted to punch and bloody him, hug and kiss him, cry and cuddle with him simultaneously. And, that scared the shit out of her. She couldn't be falling for him, not again. Where the heck was her common-sense? Did she even have any?

She hoped that these emotions were just side effects from her weakened state and that once everything got back in order; her mind would comprehend the stupidity of its actions and just gets back to disliking the guy.

She also noticed him occasionally glaring at the other guys like he was picturing their untimely deaths, which was weird.

This day's pace was no less grueling than the previous ones. Ever since sunrise, Sasuke had pushed them on in a hellish marathon that had the other ANBU and the two rain ninjas on the verge on toppling over a tree branch.

As the sky started to darken, Sasuke still didn't show any sign of stopping or slowing down aside from a slight nearly imperceptible quickening in his breathing. Actually, she wouldn't have even noticed if she wasn't so pressed up against him. She looked back on the rest of her teammate. The color of their faces had passed red and now hovered between the pallor of death and the lovely purple of hypoxemia. But, she knew that even if they were on death's door step, the stubborn men wouldn't ask Sasuke to stop or even to slow down. Stupid male pride! It looked like the duty to stop this crazy race would fall on her shoulders.

"Uchiha, I think it's time we stopped. It's getting dark and the guys are exhausted," she said.

"They haven't complained," he answered tightly.

"We both know that they wouldn't complain," she reasoned. "But, it doesn't change the fact that they're tired."

"We're on a tight schedule, we need to hurry." He said. "Don't worry. I'm sure your precious bodyguards can keep up for a little longer," he added acidly. What the heck was his problem?

"What does that mean?"

"Hn."

She might be starting to like him again but he was starting to really piss her off.

"Here's the deal, Sasuke, I'm feeling queasy. So, you can either stop now so I can get my stomach to settle down and we can rest for the day. Or I can let my body do what it wants and I'll end up ruining your lovely shirt. So, either way, we're stopping. Question is, how attached are you to your shirt?"

He scowled and she had a feeling that were she in front of him, she'd be on the receiving end of the same glare he'd been directing at the guys for the last few days. She smiled back at him and their faces were so close that his breath ghosted over her face. Oh boy! The smile slowly melted from her face and so did his glare. They looked into each other's eyes and she felt caught in the darkness of his irises. She saw something there that made her breath catch but, Sasuke hid it before she can identify it.

He broke the contact between them looking ahead once more, veered to the right and found a clearing where they could set up camp for the night. He set her down on the ground and she doubled over trying to make her stomach stop cramming. She hadn't been issuing a fake threat earlier. She did feel queasy. She breathed through her nose and batted at the dizziness. Damn, it sucked to be as helpless as a new born kitten.

Sasuke looked down at the girl crouching in front of him and felt a whole mix of emotions that set alarm bells ringing in his mind. He understood wanting to make it better for her. She was after all in one way or another at the center of their mission and he needed her in full capacity in order to pull this mission off. He also couldn't stomach the thought of a female complaining or whining. But, Sakura hadn't complained and she hadn't whined. Yet, he needed to comfort her. He wanted to _hug _her. The actual hell!

This was usually the part where he stepped up to hold her hair. He liked that part. Her hair was so soft against his scarred hands. But, today, after the little moment they had, he just had to be away. He told himself he wasn't fleeing. Uchihas don't flee. It was simply tactical withdrawal, a smart move to back away and regroup to fix the fissures in his mind. That was the only reason that could explain these crazy thought. Madness! And, he needed to get away from her to regain his sanity.

"I'm going to scout the perimeter and set traps for tonight," he informed her needing to get away from whatever effect she had on him as soon as possible.

As he turned to leave, Daichi, who must have noticed Sakura's state, walked over to her, crouched beside her and hugged her to him. He whispered something to her and she snickered.

"Don't make me laugh, you ass," she swatted at him playfully. "You're making it worse."

"Ungrateful brat," the rain shinobi said and hugged Sakura tighter.

Sasuke barely checked the instinct that told him to rip the boy's arms out of their sockets. When he looked at it reasonably, the boy was actually doing him a favor. He needed to get Sakura comforted. At the same time, he needed to get as far away as he could. So, Daichi holding her was a good thing he told himself. But, his self was having none of it.

He forced himself to turn around and walk away.

"Wait," a voice called. Sasuke turned around to see Daiki jogging towards him. "I'll go with you," he said.

"I can handle it," Sasuke said hoping to get some alone time to get himself together. And, frankly, he was surprised. With the way they had been panting when he had stopped, Sasuke figured that none of them would feel up to doing anything anytime soon. But, apparently, this one wasn't tired enough to rest yet. He reluctantly admitted that maybe they weren't as bad a ninjas as he first thought. But, he still wanted his alone time.

"I know you can. I've heard of your reputation. But, it will be faster if we did it together."

Sasuke grunted and headed for the trees. Daiki followed behind him. Looked like his alone time wasn't happening anytime soon.

A few minutes later, as they were setting the traps, Daiki spoke.

"So, are you worried about Sakura?"

"She's my teammate," the ex avenger replied dodging the question. Did he? Well, he supposed he did. He grudgingly admitted that he did care about Sakura as a teammate, always had. But, _only _as a teammate.

Perhaps that was why he didn't want that rain man sniffing near her. It was simply a concern for a teammate who was in a vulnerable state. He was protecting her as he would the other members of team seven –except maybe Sai because that man just pissed him off.

Daiki caught on to the fact that Sasuke wasn't up for chitchat. So, the next half hour was spent in silence.

When he got back, Sakura was no longer in Daichi's arms which saved the man from total annihilation. Now, he had finally faced the truth about caring for the green-eyed woman –again, only as a teammate. Thus, it was his duty to keep her safe and away from the groping hands of strangers.

The woman in question was glaring at Akira who had just started setting up the three tents for the night.

"Here's Sasuke," Akira said before turning to face the raven-haired man. "Could you please talk some sense into her?"

Sasuke looked at a seething Sakura.

"I only asked to help set the tents. It's not exactly hard labor."

"It is for you," Akira argued. From his tone of voice, this wasn't the first time they had this conversation.

Sakura made a frustrated sound and stomped off to the trees.

"Where are you going?" Akira bellowed, exasperated.

"To hell," she yelled back. "wanna come with me?"

Akira made a move to follow her, but, Sasuke raised a hand stopping him.

"I'll handle this," he said. It was after all his _duty_ to care for her.

He followed her but didn't let her detect her presence. He figured she needed some privacy…or at least the illusion of it.

She walked all around the perimeter of the camp then further into the forest, all the while mumbling incoherently under her breath. He did catch the words "jerk" and "baka". He told himself that her mumbling was not endearing. But, damn if it wasn't!

That little walk apparently sapped all her strength because, after fifteen minutes, she stopped at the trunk of a tree and all but crumbled at its base. He waited a few minutes then made his presence known. She looked up at him.

"Here to babysit?" she asked.

He didn't answer but sat next to her. He looked at her… and looked…then, he looked some more.

"Okay! Fine! I'll talk just stop staring," she exclaimed. Those obsidian eyes were staring right into her soul. It was unnerving.

"I just," she started then took a deep breath. "I don't like doing nothing. I'm used to having something to do whether it's at the hospital or in a mission or at home. Sitting around with my arms crossed while people did things for me is just weird and uncomfortable," she let out a small sigh. "I know I shouldn't have thrown a fit like a seven year old. But, doing nothing is just frustrating." _And it gives me way too much time to think of my impending doom,_ she thought. Not only that, but, she thought she might be going crazy.

"I'm going to have to apologize to Akira, aren't I?"

She looked at him. She knew he'd been listening but his face showed no reaction. A _rock_ could sympathize more with her plight.

She huffed in frustration at not getting a response and got to her feet. Her world tilted on its axes and she felt the ground rush up to meet her. Wow! That little walk really did a number on her strength. She braced herself –as much as she could- and waited for her face to hit the dirt. And, waited, and then she waited some more. When nothing happened, she opened her eyes. She was in Sasuke's arms. He had one arm around her shoulders and the other supporting her legs. Her head rested on his chest –which smelt way too good for her peace of mind. Damsel in distress much? But, she let herself feel no illusions. Sasuke wasn't prince-charming material. In fact, he'd probably bloody the shining armor and kill the white horse. So, what the heck made her want to cuddle in the nook between his shoulder and his neck?

"No more storming out on walks for you," he said. But, she barely heard him. Darkness crept into her vision and she felt something pulling at her very soul.

She knew. She was having a vision.

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**Cliff hanger! Yeah, I'm evil. I know and I love it! *evil laugh* I hope you liked that chapter. I haven't started the next one, yet. But, God willing, it'll be ready in 3 days…maybe.**

**Anyway, as you know, reviews can only motivate the author. So, ****review****!**

**Peace-out**


	6. Chapter 6

**Cyber cookies to all those who have added this fic to their alert/favorite list. And, special chocolate sprinkled cookies to those who have reviewed. I'm sorry this took so long. But, my friend that normally reads over the chapter was busy …and I might have slacked a bit too. Don't judge me!**

**Alright, I'm done giving excuses. Here is the sixth chapter. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do own Naruto… NOT.**

_**Linked: Chapter Six**_

….

Sakura felt herself being wrenched away from her body by a dark force. It was as if someone was trying to saw her in half. She mentally screamed in agony, but, knew from previous experience that all she was really doing was whimper. The tugging got progressively worse for several minutes as it always did and she hoped that it would be over soon. But, when it pain ravishing her brain finally ceased, she wished that it didn't because the physical pain was better than the scene she was seeing.

"Her" eyes were cast to the side where the body of a young ninja was dangling lifelessly from "her" sickly-white manly hand. The body dropped to the ground with a thud and "she" moved forward. She spotted a sign at her peripheral vision. It read "Waning Moon's nursing home". Sakura's blood chilled. _No!_

She focused back at the building in front of her. It was a simple small two story facility that all but radiated comfort and a homely atmosphere. But, Sakura knew that soon, it would be nothing more than a silent tomb for the cruelty of the man she was linked to.

_Stop, _she screamed willing the huge limbs carrying her to the front door to freeze. Nothing happened.

"Her" big scarred hands reached for the front door and ripped it open. Screams of surprise and terror escaped from the residents of the home. Most were elderly; a few were young and dressed in nurse uniforms. One of the nurses came rushing at "her" with a kunai. She watched in horror as "her" hand caught him. "Her" eyes fixed on the horror-filled eyes of the young man for a second before snapping his neck with a flick of a wrist. Sakura cried out desperately willing the carnage to end. An elder, probably a retired ninja, rushed towards her with a katana in hand. "Her" hand reached for her own katana on her back, and, faster than the civilian eye could see, it slashed down on the elder severing his head clean off his shoulders. Then, she moved on to the rest of the residents of the nursing home.

A few nurses and elders tried to fight "her" off. But, aside a little nick every now and then, none of them were even close enough to stop "her". "She" drained most of them out of their chakra. So, the bloodbath continued. Sakura felt chakra being sucked out of her. But, she was focused too much on the carnage unfolding before her eyes to register the draining as little more than stings all across her body. Soon, the floor was painted red and through it all, Sakura screamed.

Sasuke knew just when her link started pulling at her. She went tense in his arms. The hands that were looped around his neck tightened around him. Her short nails dug into his nape.

"Sakura," he called already running back to camp.

She didn't respond but her nails dug deeper into his skin. He knew she broke it when he felt little rivulets of blood snaking down his back. But, it wasn't _his_ pain that he was thinking about. It was hers. Just how much pain did she have to be in to hold on to him this desperately?

He finally reached their camp. The rest of the team came running toward him when they saw him cradling her.

"What happened?" Akira asked.

"She's having a vision," Sasuke answered.

"No, she's not. At least not yet," Daichi said somberly. "But, she will soon."

"Meaning what?" Sasuke gritted. He didn't have the patience for cryptic answers.

"According to Sakura, the process of linking takes several minutes in which her consciousness reaches out for the rogue's. It's why her body is tense. It's trying to hold on to her mind while the latter is being called by her bond. When she finally connects, she does into a coma like state."

As if on cue, Sakura's body went limp against him and her arms slipped from around his neck to dangle almost lifelessly at her sides. He activated his Sharingan and tried to access her mind but found nothing. It's not that he was blocked or deflected. He just didn't find anything. It was like her body was a vessel but there was nobody home.

Shit! He could feel himself panicking, something he hadn't done since he helped kill Madara all those years ago. That just goes to show just how far this little wisp of a woman managed to get under his skin.

"How long does it take her to get out of this state?" he asked.

"It depends. Some visions take up to a day, others it only takes a couple of minutes," Daichi answered. "There's really nothing we can do except try to make her comfortable. My tent has the best-"

Sasuke had heard enough. He went over to Sakura's tent planning on just settling her on her sleeping bag and getting the hell out of dodge.

He would swear until the day he died that he didn't know how she ended up laying atop sleeping bag with him sitting next to her and her head resting on his thigh.

As he looked at her, he finally allowed himself to feel what he'd been repressing ever since he teamed up with the pink-haired woman back in their genin days. She got into him where he swore never to let anyone in again; the very center of his heart. Sure, he cared about the other members of team 7 and teak Taka. But, he knew enough to know that what he felt for Sakura was different deeper. He winced. He didn't want to feel something deeper for her because in either case, he wasn't going to do anything about it. He didn't deserve her. Yeah, he was a soulless bastard with an over-inflated ego and a malfunctioning moral compass. But, he would be the first to admit that she deserved way more than what he could offer her.

He didn't have the right to just go up and hug her whenever she lost a patient and she got that sad look in her eyes. He didn't have the right to kick the crap out of her suitors. He didn't have the right to go home to her after a mission and tell her all his fears, hold her and let the brightness of her spirit seep into his pores.

So, he resigned himself to suffering in silence. He just had to save her and continue to play the heartless bastard that she thought him to be –not that she was too far off the mark with that assumption. It wasn't like she would ever go back to liking him after what he did to her.

He frowned. Since when did Uchihas have pity parties? He was a disgrace to his lineage! Deciding that, his mushy feelings would just have to be ignored for the time being, he settled against the flap of the tent and waited for his sleeping beauty to wake up.

The twins soon joined him in the tent while Akira took protection duty. It was dark now and these parts of Rain weren't exactly the safest.

It took her another three and a half hours to wake up. Sasuke felt Sakura stirring against him again. This time, it wasn't his skin that was the victim of her pain but rather his shirt. She grabbed fistfuls of it and held them so tightly to her chest that she ripped the fabric right off his body.

He instinctively caressed her hair feeling his rage mount at not being to do anything to appease her pain.

A few agonizing minutes later, Sakura opened those emerald-colored eyes and blinked up at him in confusion. His hand stopped to rest softly in her hair. He witnessed as the confusing quickly morphed into horror and terror. Sheen of moisture clouded the green globes. The sight of it never failed to send pain in coursing through his body, like being repeatedly punched in the stomach…with a kunai…a spiked one.

But, he hadn't seen Sakura cry since the war ended. She got upset and angry when she lost a patient but she didn't cry. So, what had she seen that could illicit this sort of reaction? Not sure what to say to make her feel better, he kept his mouth shut.

Sakura closed her eyes for a moment then opened them and the tears were gone. She tried to get off his lap but then fell right back groaning in pain.

"Easy," he admonished.

"How long was I out?" she asked in a gravelly voice, as if her vocal cords had been rubbed raw by unheard screams.

"Four hours," he answered.

"I know where he is," she said then proceeded to tell them about what she saw with a few interruptions from the guys. He could tell how much it hurt her to live through that. He can hear it in her voice.

When she talked, Sakura always conveyed emotion. Even when she was discussing the most boring technicalities in medicine, she would always manage to infuse something into her voice; irritation, happiness excitement…

But, now, as she told them what she'd seen, her voice was eerily void of any sentiment. He knew that technique. He basically _invented_ it. This was affecting her more than she was letting on.

By the time she finished, her speech was slurred. Sasuke frowned.

"So, this guy changed direction to a mountain village in the north and attacked a nursing home? Why?" Daiki asked.

"Who knows? The guy was an experiment he might have just gone loco," Sakura speculated.

That would mean that this guy's actions weren't predictable, that they didn't fellow any time of pattern. If they went with that theory and ruled out all others, Sasuke knew that it would take weeks if not months to find him. He looked down at the small woman in his lap. Yeah, that wasn't happening. He needed to account for all possibilities.

"What if the attacks weren't random?" he said. "What if this lunatic has a purpose? What places did he attack so far?"

"That we know of? Some village on the borders of Fire and Rain, a temple on the other side of the borders, a medical lab in the south of rain and now a nursing home in the northern mountains," Sakura recited slowly. "What could possibly link these places?"

Her voice drifted for a second and her eyes seemed to be looking far away.

"What's wrong?" Sasuke asked.

"Fever," Daichi answered. "Where are your pills?" he asked Sakura.

"Back pack, inside left pocket," she answered. "But, I'll be fine. I just need to sleep it off. It happens after every vision."

Daichi went over to Sakura's back pack and started rummaging inside.

"Oooh," he exclaimed. "I found panties, black ones. Nice choice!" He lifted his head and wiggled his eyebrows at the medic.

She giggled. "Privacy, Daichi! Have you ever heard of it, you pervert?" she asked her voice regaining some of its usual playfulness.

He returned with the pills and a bottle of water. "Yeah, isn't it a kind of desert or something?" he said smiling unrepentantly. She took the pills then looked at Sasuke.

"I need to sit up a bit to take these. So, could you…uh…help, please?" The playfulness left her voice a little. She could have been blushing. But, then again it could be just the fever.

He lifted her head a little. She downed the pills and the water. A little of the liquid slipped past her lips to her chin. When she rested back in his lap, he reached out without thinking and wiped the water from her face. She gave him a startled look.

"Thanks," she whispered.

"No problem," he whispered back.

Someone cleared his throat.

"Do you guys need a minute," Daiki asked.

"Shut up!" Sakura said glaring. Even with the fever, the vision and the near dying, the girl had spirit. If he were any other guy, he would have reached down and ruffled her hair maybe even smiled at her. But, he wasn't. So he just smirked at the guy.

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**I hope you liked that. This chapter was originally really long. So, I decided to cut it in half.**

**So, ****review****! And, get a cyber cookie for free (For anyone who wants special demands for their cookie, you can mention them and I'll see if I can accommodate you :P)**

**Peace-out**


	7. Chapter 7

**I'm sorry I'm late. But, spring break is over and school and exams are killing me. So, from now on I'll only be able to update once a week :'( **

**As always, thank you to all of you who have reviewed. You really make me so happy :) and special thanks to my friend Ines for reading through the chapter.**

**Hope you enjoy it the seventh chapter**

**Disclaimer: I do own Naruto… NOT.**

_**Linked: Chapter Seven**_

….

A few seconds later, Sasuke felt the rosette go relaxed in his lap and knew, even without looking, that she had fallen asleep. Daichi headed back to Sakura's backpack and came back with a blanket that he threw over her.

"How long will the fever last?" he asked.

"Usually three to four days," Daiki answered. "She'll probably start tossing and turning soon."

"And, the bad mood," Akira said coming into the tent. "I don't enjoy her pain, but, I've got to admit that I do like her feisty."

"I'll take the next shift," Daiki volunteered then left.

Sakura's head started thrashing in his lap. He reached down and put his hand on her forehead. Her head stayed still. Damn, she was burning up. He lifted his hand to get her some water and she started to thrash again. He put his hand back on her forehead and she stopped. _Okay! So, the hand stays_, Sasuke thought glad that at least subconsciously, she needed his touch.

Akira stayed for a couple of more hours discussing what the places attacked could possibly have in common. Aside from being remote places good for hiding, they found nothing. But, someone who was hiding wouldn't draw attention to himself by killing people.

A couple of minutes later, Akira left.

"You're not leaving," Sasuke said addressing Daichi. It was a statement rather than a question.

"No, I'm not," the man answered the non-question. There was a small silence. "Look, I don't really know what's going on between you two. But, just don't hurt her."

Sasuke gave him the Uchiha death glare. "What makes you think that I will?"

The rain shinobi rolled his eyes "Considering the tension between you, I figured something must have happened. And, I saw the way you were looking at her." his tone suggested there was more to it than that.

"And…" Sasuke prompted.

The man sighed "Nothing." With that, he lied down on the ground near them and fell asleep.

Sasuke tried to set Sakura's head down on so he can sleep. But, she snuggled into his side and pouted. Looked like he would have to sleep sitting up which didn't lead to the most comfortable sleep but he'd slept in worse positions.

Sakura opened her eyes to find herself standing paralyzed in the training field frequented by Team Seven. It was morning and everything was calm.

Her blood chilled. She knew she was dreaming. She had had this nightmare before, so much so that she had memorized every hazy detail of it. But, no matter how many times she had it, the fear she felt never diminished. She tried to get herself to wake up but she couldn't move. The sound of people talking reached her ears. Soon after that, Naruto, Sai, Kakashi and Sasuke came into view, obviously getting ready to start training. They stopped five yards away from her.

"Where's Sakura-Chan?" Naruto asked.

"Naruto, I'm here," she yelled. "You need to leave."

But, nobody showed any sign that they had heard or seen her.

"She probably got caught up at the hospital," Kakashi said.

Sai nodded and the Uchiha, true to his nature remained stoic.

"Hey guys!" came a voice from the other end of the field.

Sakura watched as Fake Sakura came to greet her other teammates in a much more subdued manner than she normally did. She was dressed in her normal ninja attire and still had on her lab coat. "Sorry, I'm late. We had a surgery that went wrong," she said, her head hung down in defeat.

Naruto frowned, his sweet caring nature "I'm guessing that it didn't end well."

"Naruto, please get away from her," the real Sakura begged then turned on the fake Sakura. "Leave them alone. Don't do this! They're your teammates!"

Nobody paid any attention to her pleas.

"No," Fake Sakura said the faintest sob making its way into her voice, "We lost the patient."

"Aw, I'm sorry," Naruto said opening his arms, "Come here."

Fake Sakura went into his arms. Kakashi stepped over to ruffle her hair affectionately.

The real Sakura watched in mute horror as Fake Sakura pulled a kunai out of thin air and plunged it into Naruto's back. She pulled the blood stained kunai out and plunged it into Kakashi's chest next. Fake Sakura let out a maniacal laugh. But, it wasn't Sakura's feminine laughter that came out. It was the rogue's masculine voice that reveled in the blood and insanity. Fake Sakura's face flashed between Sakura's, the rogue's and then back again. She then turned on the remaining members of the team.

Sai and Sasuke moved forward.

"Ugly, what have you done?" Sai exclaimed rushing to the dead bodies of Naruto and Kakashi.

The real Sakura screamed for him to get away, to run but knew that he wouldn't.

"Don't trust her," the voice sounded dangerously close to him. Ninja skills that had been honed for years under the most extreme of circumstances had him reaching for the kunai he kept close to him and trying to get up but a weight in his lap prevented him.

What the-?

He looked down to see a mass of pink hair flying all over him as Sakura shook her head back and forth. Her whole body was sweating and shivering. She was speaking in broken sentences. "Don't trust her! Get away! She'll kill you!"

"Sakura," he called softly. That only seemed to agitate her further. He looked across the tent. Daichi was now awake too. He had a flashlight in his hand.

"Her fever always brings out nightmares," He said moving to her side and shaking her.

"What about?" Sasuke asked. What could have possibly rattled her like this?

"I don't know. She refuses to tell anyone." Daichi said shaking her harder. "Sakura wake up!" he yelled leaning over her.

The woman bolted up from Sasuke's lap. He barely managed to move away from her before their heads collided. She looked up at him, eyes wide frightened and clouded from her fever. She grabbed him by the collar. "Don't trust her. Get away from her. She'll kill you."

Daichi pried her fingers away from Sasuke. "Alright," he said like someone talking to an agitated animal who could strike at anytime. "He won't get near her, right, Sasuke?" He looked at the last Uchiha desperately seeking his cooperation.

"I promise not to," Sasuke said, having no idea what he was promising.

That seemed to placate Sakura. She slowly lowered her head back in Sasuke's lap.

"Go to sleep, Sakura," Daichi gently put the blanket back over her.

"I don't think I can, she mumbled rubbing with drowsy eyes.

"That's just the fever talking, sweetie," he said.

"No really, I'm fine."

Daichi looked at her suspiciously "Are you sure?"

"Yeah! Just go back to sleep" she added a smile for his sake.

"Alright, here's the flashlight if you need anything."He went back to his corner and got back to sleep. Sakura turned off the flashlight and set it down next to her.

"You're not going back to sleep are you?" Sasuke asked after a few minutes.

"Probably not," she said. "I don't sleep well after a…"

"Nightmare," he supplied. "Are you going to tell me what it was about?"

"Nope," she answered not wanting to discuss it with anyone. Even in the darkness, she felt him frowning at her. She let out a sigh. "Go to sleep, Uchiha."

"Hn." He grunted which, she guessed, translated to 'no'.

"I really hate grunting. What do you plan on doing all night, anyway?"

"Wait for you to fall asleep," he answered making her heart lurch in her rib cage. That was sweet…in a stalker-ish, creepy way. And, the problem was that he didn't sound annoyed by it! Was this really Sasuke Uchiha? She turned on the flashlight and pointed it toward him to see if he had turned into someone else –she blamed this bit of insanity on the fever. The harsh light from the flashlight hit his eyes full-on and he turned his face. Yep, still Sasuke. "Sorry," she said moving the light slightly to the left so that it illuminated his shoulder and cast his face in a soft glow. That's when she saw the side of the collar of his shirt. It was soaked in blood.

"What happened?" she began to get up to heal whatever injury she sustained then remembered that, with her current chakra levels, she's be lucky if she managed to heal a paper cut without slipping into a coma.

Sasuke seemed puzzled for a minute than smirked. "It's just a few scratches. You tend to get a little claw-happy when you're in pain, I guess," he said.

Sakura felt guilt and mortification piercing her chest and heat flooding her face. "I did that?" she squeaked.

He nodded, still smirking.

"I'm so sorry," she said. "I didn't mean…I just wasn't…that's to say..."

The Uchiha's smirk widened. And, her embarrassment evaporated. She narrowed her eyes at him. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

The smirk turned into a full blown smile. Sakura's heart did a little happy dance in her rib cage and she couldn't help returning his smile. She knew she couldn't blame this on the fever. Damn this man and his good looks. And, where, in the name of that is holy, did this playful side of him come from?

The spent the rest of the night talking. Well, she rambled while he occasionally interrupted. Sakura discovered that Sasuke was in fact capable of holding a conversation with more than monosyllabic responses. They talked about his coming back to Konoha, about her work, about the team, about missions. They never ventured into sensitive subjects like his time in Otto or her impending death. They kept it light and Sakura felt better than she had in over a month. Who knew talking to Sasuke could lead to anything other than an aneurysm? Heck, the boy seemed to be downright charming when compared to his usual brooding self. And, she felt herself get pulled in by his charm.

By the time she finally tired herself out, the first ray of sunshine was piercing through the cover of the darkness. _Don't make me fall back in love with you_, she thought before she surrendered to sweet slumber.

Sasuke knew Sakura was tired. "Go to sleep," he said.

"Okay," she mumbled softly. She turned off the flashlight. "Don't make me fall back in love with you," she whispered right before she fell asleep.

His breath left him in one big exhale. What the hell? He looked at her, measuring her soft breathing pattern. She was out cold. He knew she didn't mean to say that. But, why would she say that? Maybe it was the fever, probably was. Would she even remember it come morning?

One thing was for certain, the little slip of a woman was dangerous to his peace of mind.

Sakura woke up the next morning to find herself draped on Sasuke's back while he jumped through the trees –a position she was quiet used to by now. She looked at his neck. He had changed his shirt. So, there was no blood there. But, Sakura could still see crescent-shaped scratches on his skin. She winced in sympathy and guilt

"You're up," he stated.

"Good morning to you too, Uchiha," she said.

He smirked at her attempt to scold him. There was only silence for a few minutes. Then, he spoke.

"Do you remember what you told me last night right before you went to sleep?"

Sakura frowned. What was he talking about? She tried to remember.

"That I really hate the hospital's cafeteria food? Why? Do you plan on testing it out for yourself?" she teased.

He let out what she could have sworn was a light laugh. "No."

"Then why?"

"Nothing," he replied.

"Oh, come on, Uchiha."

"Hn," he said.

"You might not see me, but I'm glaring at you right now. 'Hn' is not a viable answer to any question. Seriously, can you-"

Sakura screamed and tightened her hold on Sasuke as he suddenly jumped down the tree branch and into the ground.

"What the hack Uchiha? If you were going to pull a stunt like that, the least you could do is give a heads-up!"

"We have company," he whispered eyeing their surroundings.

Sakura looked up to the tree they jumped out of. She felt fury grip her as she spotted three kunais imbedded in the trunk, right where she and Sasuke were. That was exactly what they didn't need!

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**Yeah, Sasuke is being his stubborn self. Let's see how he acts when Sakura is in danger :P I hope you liked that. **

**You know what to do! Just click that achingly empty box so it won't feel lonely and ****review****!**

**Peace-out**


	8. Chapter 8

**From now one, I'll probably only be able to update every two weeks. It sucks majorly! But, I feel so guilty for not getting to update sooner because I'm really enjoying writing this fan fiction. So, I decided to make my chapters a little longer… okay, this one turned out a lot longer…like twice my normal chapter size! So there you go. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do own Naruto… NOT.**

_**Linked: Chapter Eight**_

….

Sasuke got Sakura behind him and surveyed their unwanted company. There were at least thirty of them. But, judging by the deplorable state of their weapons and sloppy stances, these were your average want-to-be-ninjas cutthroats. He fished out a couple of shuriken. This shouldn't take more than thirty minutes.

The rest of the guys had attacked the gang. He was sure they could've handled it on their own. But, he decided to hurry things along a little. He couldn't waste time with these idiots when Sakura might be running out of time.

The twins and Akira had already engaged the assailants in battle. To be honest, it wasn't a battle as much as just the guys kicking the asses of these street thugs. It was comical to watch.

Sasuke turned to her.

"Stay here," he ordered then jumped into the fray. She grumbled at his authoritarian tone. But, she did as he asked because she knew that at her current state; even a student from the academy could best her… well, maybe not the academy! How embarrassing would that be? Still, the fact of the matter was that she was in no shape to fight.

A skinny guy sporting a rusty-looking kunai broke from the cluster of bodies where the "battle" was taking place. He was about to head back into the little war zone. But, when he saw her alone, he changed direction and charged her with a grimace that showed off his yellowed teeth. She reached for her own weapons and fought him off. He slashed at her wildly and randomly obviously having little to none training in the use of weapons. She managed to avoid him for the most part and land a few hits of her own. But, he did manage to nick her arm which was a testament to how much this ordeal had taxed on her strength.

The sight of the blood on her arm pissed her off to no end. If this scrawny little guy thought that the hokage's apprentice was about to be bested by the likes of him, he had another think coming. Sakura changed her hold on her weapon and attacked him viciously forcing him to retreat. But, she didn't let him get away. She kept advancing on him with murder in her eyes. He stumbled on some rocks and she moved in for the kill, slashing her kunai across his jugular. The thug's eyes bugged out and his hands flew to his neck in a futile attempt to stop the flow of blood. Five seconds later, he crumbled lifelessly to the ground.

Sakura had a flashback of the man linked to her killing those people at the nursing home. Her chest constricted. No, she wasn't like him. She only killed this man in self defense. That was different…right?

Shaking her head at the morose thoughts, she turned back to see the guys continue to fight what was left of the gang –the ones that hadn't been dispensed off or ran away. She tried to take a few steps toward them. But, her legs, which felt like they had the consistency of Jell-O, couldn't hold her. She stumbled and nearly fell flat on her face. She felt dizzy. Man, that little fight had really done a number on her.

With her vision winking in and out, she focused on the battlefield. She spotted a bulky man standing on the sidelines watching her. He must have witnessed her fight with his comrade and decided that she was the weakest link because he gave her a sickening smirk and moved to her.

Maybe she could call for one of the guys which would really hurt her pride, but better to have a bruised ego than one way ticket to the after-life. She looked back at the boys. Each was dealing with at least two rascals. Sasuke was dealing with four! If she called to them, they might get distracted and get hurt. No, she would have to deal with this vermin of a man on her own.

Trying not to show that she was two seconds away from collapsing, she crouched into a fighting stance waiting for him to make the first move. He mimicked her stance and moved a little closer. The way he circled her told her that this one was a more seasoned fighter than his other fallen comrade. He must have had a little bit of training. She kept track of his movement as much as she could. But, with exhaustion creeping into every cell of her body, it wasn't an easy thing to do.

He attacked and she was ready for him dodging him and swinging her first to connect with jaw with a sickening crack. He staggered back, quickly recovered and charged her again. She spun out of his reach then moved back in to kick his legs out from under him. But, her movements must have been much slower than usual because he managed to take a hold of her leg before it connected with his body. He used her own momentum against her and pulled her back towards him. He let go of her leg to catch the hand holding her kunai. He squeezed until she dropped the weapon then wrapped his thick hands around her neck.

"I'm going to enjoy seeing the light leave your pretty green eyes," he sneered, his putrid breath hitting her face. He squeezed his hand tighter cutting off her air supply. She tried to claw at his hands or to kick him with her legs but her movement came out sluggish and didn't seem to affect him. If anything, it seemed to amuse him.

"Not so tough now, are you?" he growled.

Black spots danced in her vision.

Suddenly, the pressure around her throat was lifted. She collapsed to the ground coughing, spluttering, inhaling air in big gulps forcing her bruised airways open. She opened her eyes to see the man that came just shy of killing her, clutching his burnt hand and cursing at her… no, not at her but at someone behind her.

"You didn't think we'd let you guys have all the fun, now did you?" the most welcome familiar voice said from behind her. Naruto! She turned around.

It wasn't just Naruto; there was also Kakashi and Sai.

Seeing that she had backup, the man that was strangling her ran as did the other remaining members of his gang. But, Sakura was paying no attention to anything aside for the three men that had just arrived. She struggled to her feet with great effort.

"How did you get here?" she asked barely managing to get the words out passed her abused throat.

"We got worried about you. We went to visit but you weren't there. And the Teme had mysteriously disappeared. So we suspected something. We asked Baa-Chan. But, she brushed us off and was acting weird. So, we broke into her office," Naruto said.

"She wasn't very happy about that," Sai interrupted.

"She caught you?" Sakura said, imagining the fit of temper her mentor must have thrown.

"Yeah, that old woman has eyes on the back of her skull," Naruto said with an exaggerated shudder. "But she only caught us after we managed to find out about your mission."

Sakura knew her mentor well enough to suspect that the devious woman had _let_ the guys find that information. Tsunade was reckless at times, yes, but, never when it came to the secrets of the village. But Sakura decided to let the guys have their fun and continue to think that they'd bested the Hokage.

"So what happened then?" she asked.

"We convinced her-" Naruto said.

"He means he pestered," Sai interrupted.

Naruto glared at him. "As I said, we _convinced_ Baa-Chan to let us in on the mission." He paused for a moment. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked her.

"Yeah," she replied on scratchy voice. Her voice would take forever to get back to normal.

"Good," he said. "Now, I can yell at you. WHAT WERE YOU THINKING GOING ON THIS MISSION HALF-COCKED AND NOT TELLING US THAT YOU WERE _DYING_?"

"Naruto-" she started.

"No," his voice was getting progressively louder and the hurt and betrayal in his blue eyes pierced her heart. She looked at Kakashi for help. But, he too was staring at her accusingly from his uncovered eye."Why didn't you trust us with this?" the whiskered man continued. "What have we done to make you keep something like this from us?"

"I do trust, you guys," she said "I just wanted to spare you the pain and the guilt I know you'd feel if I-"

"That was our choice to make," Kakashi quietly interrupted, obviously not willing to even acknowledge the fact that she might die.

Looking at the concern and fear that clouded the normally cheery faces of her teammates made her misty-eyed, a fact that in any other situation would have made her furious. But, at the moment, she didn't care. All that mattered was the fact that these men have broken into the Hokage's office, extracted classified information and travelled hundreds of miles just to look after her and she loved them for it.

True to the nature of men when faced with the threat feminine tears, Naruto immediately changed his demeanor.

"Sakura-Chan, we were just worried," he said in an uncharacteristically quiet voice.

He hugged her and, for a second, Sakura remembered her dream about Naruto hugging her and then getting killed. She tensed, then forcibly banished the disturbing thoughts and hugged him back. These thoughts were slowly driving her crazy.

Sasuke didn't miss the way Sakura tensed when Naruto first hugged her. Neither did he miss how tightly she later wound her arms around the blond-man –which totally didn't make Sasuke want to kick the living daylights out of the dope. Said dope was still crushing Sakura in a bear hug and cutting off her newly reacquired air supply.

"Enough, you're crushing her," he finally gritted.

The boy loosened his hold around the medic and waited until she looked at him. He couldn't have missed how pale she was or the dark circled under her eyes.

"You look like death warmed over," the blond idiot told her.

She laughed. "You really know how to make a girl feel special, Naruto."

"I try," he answered grinning and probably relieved at the retreat of the tears. "I have a surprise for you."

"Oh?"

"Yes! Sai if you'd please do the honors."

Sai reached into his pack and pulled out a scroll.

"The Hokage said she had received it just before she caught us and that we should bring it to you right away. Some ninja's from Sand found it in one of Orochimaru's hideouts there and it took some time to bring it to Leaf. We were in a hurry to get to you so we haven't opened it yet. But, the Hokage said it might help us find the man that you're…uh"

"Linked to," she supplied.

"Yeah, that." He handed her the scroll.

Sakura took it and opened it. Her fingers immediately tightened on the parchment. There, on the very top of the scroll, was a picture of the man who was responsible for this nightmare.

Hiraku

She had a name to link with the much hated face. Seeing his face made her vibrate with rage, made her relive the countless deaths he'd caused

She felt Sasuke move in behind her to read over her shoulder. His closeness seemed to take away the razor sharp edge of her anger, to ground her in the present. She scanned though the files trying to find something that would help them locate the bastard. According to this scroll, in his youth, Hiraku had exhibited exceptional chakra-control skills. Orochimaru must have heard of him because at ten, he kidnapped him. The scroll contained a file in which the snake pervert had compiled information about him.

When she was done, she felt her stomach acting up. The sheer brutality of some of the experiments performed on the man was blood-chilling. No wonder he went insane and on a murdering rage. Apparently, Orochimaru managed to give him the ability to absorb people's chakra by touch. She mentally marked the parts that described this technique. Then, scanned the scroll again to see if anything could tell them where he was headed.

"Wait, stop," Sasuke said when she tried to get to the next part of the scroll.

She stopped and looked at him. She knew from that arrogant I'm-a-genius-so-bow-down-to-me look on his face that he'd found something.

"I think I know where he's headed," he said.

All eyes fixed on him.

"Well, do you mind elaborating on that, Teme?" Naruto asked impatience dripping from every syllable.

Sasuke took the scroll from Sakura. She glared at his highhanded ways but didn't protest. She was just as impatient to know what he found as Naruto.

He ignored her glare and focused on the scroll. He read out loud a paragraph about a possible mean for Hiraku to improve his power that Orochimaru came up with, a sort of potion that would enable to drain the chakra out of people without having any physical contact with them, like what he had done with her. Only this will enable to absorb the chakra much more quickly than he was absorbing hers. As Sasuke recited the ingredients for the potion, Sakura understood where Sasuke was headed with this.

Most of the ingredients were extremely rare and some of them were rumored to be found in the areas where Hiraku attacked.

"He's looking for the next ingredient," Sakura said when Sasuke was finished.

"So, we can cross-reference the ingredients to the areas that he's headed to and pinpoint his location," Kakashi added.

"It's worth a try," Daichi said.

"Who are you?" Naruto asked as if just noticing the presence of Akira and the twins. So much for ninja senses!

She quickly made introductions.

"Thanks for taking care of her," Kakashi said shaking Daiki's hand.

"It was no hardship. Sakura-Chan is pretty good at taking care of herself… when she's not obsessing about her work," the rain ninja said.

Kakashi chuckled "Yeah she does tend to do that."

"_She _would appreciate it if you stopped talking about her as if she's not here," Sakura grumbled.

Sasuke had had enough of this chit-chat.

"We don't have time to waste," he reminded them. "We need to get back on the road."

"Yes," Naruto agreed "But that doesn't mean I'm not going to yell at you for keeping this from us, Teme."

But Sasuke was pretty sure that Naruto's speech wouldn't make him feel half as guilty as he was already feeling. He had stupidly gone to the fight leaving Sakura unprotected. He'd thought that he could take those bastards out in a matter of minutes. He'd underestimated his opponent –an unforgivable rookie's mistake.

He'd left her alone, a sitting duck for those two men to attack while he went out to the front of the battle wanting to play the goddamn hero. He looked at her neck that was already turning varied shades of purple. He looked at her right arm where that piece of trash slashed her then looked away. What if Naruto was even a minute late? What if more than one man had attacked her? He drank in the sight of her needing to assure his mind (and heart) that she was alive. He needed to hold her and felt the warmth of her skin and the beat of her heart against his own. Kami, when did he start sounding like a wuss?

As if knowing what he was thinking, Sakura put her hand on his shoulder and squeezed. "Hey, I'm fine, Uchiha!" she whispered with a soft smile.

He realized that she had learnt to read him well over the days spent on this mission. The thought of someone being able to see through his façade usually made him pull back and shut that person out completely. But with Sakura, it was different. _He _was different. He… trusted her. He didn't feel cornered like he usually did. It felt good to have her offer comfort without him having to utter a word. That was dangerous, extremely dangerous because he can get used to that because this was temporary, because as soon as this mission was over and she got rid of her link (and he would get her out of her link) she would get back to treating him like a vaguely familiar acquaintance –even if she did say those things to him last night. He knew that he wouldn't be able to deal with her giving him the _polite_ treatment.

Sasuke scowled. And, there he went, being a wuss again.

Despite her comforting words, he noticed that she was weaving on her legs. The woman was too stubborn to admit that those fights (the ones he was responsible for) had depleted whatever strength she'd gained the night before.

"Come on," he said urging her toward a boulder away from the others who were debating the best strategy to get to the ingredients before Hiraku does. "Before we leave, I need to take a look at that cut."

She sat down on the boulder and offered up her arm. He looked back at his teammates and they were watching him with narrowed eyes, obviously having picked up on the change in his relationship with Sakura. He knew there was going to be an interrogation later about it and he'd deal with it when it happened. But at the moment, he needed to focus on Sakura's injury. He pulled a kunai and ripped off the sleeve of her sweater. He forced himself to focus on tending her wound instead of admiring how soft her skin was. And it was _silky_ soft.

"It's not deep," she said. "I'll just clean it and bandage it. And, I'll be as good as new."

"He used a rusty kunai." He countered.

"I got a tetanus shot last month after extracting a rusty weapon from patient and cutting myself, so I should be fine. Just hand me the first-aid kit so I can wrap it."

"I'll do it."

"Really, Uchiha, you don't have-"

"I'll do it," he insisted. It was the least he can do.

"Alright," she conceded wisely deciding not to expand the rest of her strength on a pointless fight with him.

Sasuke went to where Daichi was still speaking with Sai and Kakashi. He silently took out the first-aid kit from the backpack next to the man and padded back to Sakura.

He took out the antiseptic cream. "This is going to hurt," he warned her.

She smiled "That's usually my line."

He applied the cream and tried to work and swiftly and gently as he could. But, every time she tried to hide a wince, he felt himself trying to hide one too. So now he was an Empath? And why did her skin have to be so warm? The fire of her seared his skin and all he wanted to do was wrap her in his arms and soak up that warmth. Alright, this was so not the right mind track!

Why was he being so gentle? He was treating her as if she was made of the most fragile of glass. The worst thing was she liked it! She liked it. His tentative touches were sending little sparks across her skin -ones that had nothing to do with the burn of the disinfectant- and it made her want to get a little closer to him, a lot closer!

He tied the bandage around her arm. Then, he scooped her up and put her on his back. "Let's go," he called out before jumping to the trees.

The other guys wasted no time in catching up to him. Within a few minutes, Sakura was asleep. Noticing this, Naruto, Kakashi and Sai moved in to flank him; his old mentor on the right and the dope and his creepy replacement on the left.

Let the grilling begin!

"Is there something between you and Sakura that we should know about, Sasuke?" Kakashi asked

"No," he answered. Nothing was going on and nothing ever would with Sakura. He had done enough damage in her life.

"So, why was she touching your shoulder? You never let anyone touch you without snapping or going right out violent. I tried to hug you at your birthday and ended up in the hospital for my efforts," Naruto grumbled.

"She was trying to get my attention to talk to me, not to annoy the hell out of me, dope."

"And, what do you call making goo-goo eyes at each other?"

Sasuke's eyebrow twitched. Uchihas didn't make goo-goo eyes. "It's called eye contact. It's the polite thing to do when you're having a conversation with someone."

"And, what about the whole whispering routine back there?" Sai demanded.

"Her throat is sore," he didn't have the patience for this inquisition.

There was a silence. They had clearly run out of incriminating evidence. But, he knew that they wouldn't let the subject drop.

"There is something going on, Uchiha. I can smell it," Naruto said sniffing the air.

"She slept on his lap last night," Daichi volunteered. Sasuke decided that the boy had just signed his death warrant.

"I knew it," Naruto screamed causing Sakura to stir on Sasuke's back.

"Naruto," she said.

"Yeah, Sakura-Chan"

"Shut Up. I'm trying to sleep."

But, despite the fact that her breathing evened out later and she relaxed against him, he knew that she never went back to sleep.

That night, he took the first security shift. He climbed into a tree that offered the best view of their surroundings and sat down on a high branch. Two hours after everyone had gone to sleep, Sakura got out of her tent and leaned against the trunk of the tree he'd chosen. He climbed down. Meeting her alone in the middle of the night was now the natural thing to do, the right thing to do.

He examined her face in the flimsy light that the crescent moon offered. She looked even paler than usual and there were dark spots beneath her forest-green eyes. "You need to go back to sleep."

"I'm not sleepy."

Her traitorous body decided to choose that moment to give her the biggest yawn in the history of humanity.

"Yeah, I can see that you're not," Sasuke replied smirking. She glared at him. He seemed to sober up. "Is it the nightmares?" he asked.

How the heck did he guess that? She saw no point in lying. "Yeah," she replied

"I'm guessing you're still not going to tell me about them," he said.

An idea struck her. "I'll make you a deal, Uchiha. I'll tell you about my nightmare if you tell me what you were talking about this morning before the fight."

He arched an eyebrow and seemed to debate the matter for a few seconds. Then, he moved toward her until there was scarcely any space left between them. She was now pressed up against the tree with their bodies almost touching. Her eyes flew up to his face. He was given her a look that spelled all kinds of trouble.

"Last night, before you fell asleep, you told me something," he said in a low raspy voice that made her body tingle all over. "You told me 'Don't make me fall back in love with you.'"

Her heart stuttered to a stop then resumed its work double-time.

SHIT!

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**So how was that? It was written in under four hours and it wasn't beta-read. So, go easy on me, people!**

**And, as always: ****REVIEW****!**

**Peace-out**


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